Grey and brown and in between

[chairman]

Hey just a question here. I looked on the EB site at faction unit lists, and it seems that all thureophoroi and thorakitai are dressed in rather drab colors. As compared even to some of the levy troops, these two types of soldier appear to all be dressed in dull shades of grey, brown and in between. I was just wondering what is the reasoning behind this convention. I'm not criticising, I'm just curious. Thanks in advance.

Chairman

[Megas Methuselah]

Dyes for clothing were expensive. The drab colours are undyed clothing.

[PershsNhpios]

I'm not sure, Chairman.. (?) , if you are still playing the original Rome: Total War, however what you describe of the unit colours here sounds dissimilar to what is shown in-game.
Delightful colours and art is certainly not the object of this game, but I can tell you as a witness that even the Celts, who dress in all the drabbiest rags and most appalling fashions make a beautiful array with their standards and tartans on the field.
The balkan factions, and those that begin further south amidst the Pindos Oros, are perhaps some of the least drab when you have the chance to view them.

Compliments must be given to the shield decorations and the many banners, also the design and dress of the Generals and captains themselves, are far more colourful yet less Cartoonistic than what is portrayed in the old version.
If you are worried about the appearance of the units, and there are many, many units in EB, then abolish your fears - they are the most detailed and characterised in any community.

[Megas Methuselah]

Don't be scared to play EB. When I started my first EB campaign, a new star appeared in the heavens...

[chairman]

What I mean is that while different factions have different colors and amounts of color for similar units, the thureophoroi and thorakitai have almost the same colors for each faction that has access to them. And the drabness isn't just clothing but also (and especially) the shields. Hoplitai, Pezhetairoi, Peltastai, Klerouchoi Phalangatai, Elite Phalanxes, Eastern light troop varieties, and most celtic troops all have brightly colored shields and equipment. But the most colorful that thur. or thor. get is a yellowish shield for Makedonian thureophoroi and a maroon tunic for Seleucid thorakitai. White, grey or dust colored shields seem to be the norm for these soldiers. This seems counter-intuitive for troops that in some cases might be classed as sub-elites. The lack of variety in color goes beyond the normal period expensiveness of color dyes. And I am not comparing with garish and gag-worthy units from vanilla .

Chairman

[pezhetairoi]

Well, I suppose there's only so much variation you can have when the dyes you had in those days were limited. I'd actually rather have the Greek troops looking drab dangerous grey and white than the garish blue and red pain-on-the-eyes KH peltastai design, which makes a monstrous contrast to the other Hellenic troops.